Geologic Provinces of Oklahoma

Abstract

The geologic provinces of Oklahoma are mainly the product of tectonics and attendant sedimentation of Pennsylvanian age. Most boundaries are structural; thus, the provinces map is a generalized tectonic map. Permain and post-Paleozoic strata tend to mask those structures, but most of those strata have been removed by erosion, except in the Anadarko Basin and the Wichita Uplift provinces. The location of most of Oklahoma’s oil and gas resources are either influenced by, or are the direct result of Pennsylvanian tectonics and sedimentation patterns. Therefore, the present study also defines provinces in the subsurface on the basis of geological criteria. The authors have attempted to use the originally published names for the recognized provinces. However, we have also used the most geologically correct names, i.e., Nemaha Uplift, Nemaha Fault Zone, and Central Oklahoma Fault, in lieu of Nemaha “Ridge.”